Russian invasion threat to Ukraine imminent, says Joly, amid diplomacy, cyberattacks

Published February 15, 2022 at 4:49 pm

OTTAWA — Canada’s foreign affairs minister says the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine remains high as cyberattacks undermined earlier optimism Tuesday that the Kremlin might be drawing down its military forces.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says in an interview that the threat of invasion remains real and imminent.

Joly says Canada and its NATO allies want to see actual proof that Russia has reduced its 130,000-strong troop deployment along Ukraine’s borders beyond video imagery of Russian heavy artillery being loaded onto transports with no specific details about where that might be happening.

Joly spoke shortly after the prospect of a Russian invasion seemed to ease with President Vladimir Putin saying he didn’t want a war and wants peaceful discussion with the West.

But then a series of cyberattacks hit Ukrainian government departments and banks, knocking them off-line.

Joly says she is extremely concerned by the cyberattacks and has spoken to her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, for more details.